[center][h1][u][b]No Hope, No Glory, No Problem[/b][/u][/h1] [h2]A [i]No More Heroes[/i] RP[/h2] [h3]A.K.A. “There’s a Shortage of Heroes Right Now, Stop Asking”[/h3][/center] The year is... irrelevant. Some time in the future, obviously. Maybe fifty years or so? Give or take a decade. Times have changed, and yet human nature, for all the advances made in human rights and such, has not. People still want people dead, wars still happen within those countries that aren’t rich enough to hire other countries to fight for them, and sometimes, you just can’t get rid of somebody without calling in a professional to take care of business. That is what assassins are for. You hire them, they do the dirty work you can’t or won’t do, and they receive payment for their efforts. It’s a gory, cynical world that assassins live in, made all the more cynical by certain groups who, in their greed, have somehow legitimised the process into a sort of assassin-on-assassin competition. Each continent has its groups, of course, but the foremost league by far is the United Assassins Association - the original guild of assassins itself, hailing from North America. Their practical monopoly over the vast majority of the continent’s fighters gives them the wherewithal to send their assassins across the globe, and naturally, the trail of carnage that leads back to them is magnetic, drawing in ever more assassins to join the UAA heedless of nationality. Their name, then, could not be more ironic. Each assassin has a rank, which the jobs they are offered and the pay they receive from these derive from. To increase their rank, they must defeat the assassin above them. Short of a soft heart within the winner, this almost always means death for one party or the other. In theory, the procedure rapidly culls those who can’t keep up, leaving only the cream of the crop to do the actual assassination work; in practice, these ranked matches are the UAA’s primary draw, which the un-squeamish and bloodthirsty often peruse when they can’t participate themselves. As most might expect, though, most assassins are fodder compared to the top tiers, and to this upper class of murderer come rich rewards... and not just from the job itself. Surprisingly few have done the math on these numbers, and those who have find that if every assassin from the top few ranks pooled their earnings, they’d each achieve a greater total reward than any of them alone... at least in terms of money-to-time ratios. Yet fewer still believe getting even two closely-ranked assassins working together, let alone a full team, is nigh-impossible without them ultimately killing each other off. Let’s see if you can’t prove them wrong. [hr] Welcome to the world of No More Heroes - albeit a world that has progressed a few decades since the time of the canonical games. Technology is more powerful, artificial intelligence somehow hasn’t taken over from human beings, and the game of assassination is as difficult as ever, moreso even as the United Assassins Association has come into ever greater prominence, though it remains hidden in the shadows of society at the end of the day (and legally doesn’t exist at all, due to a few well-placed bribes to those in positions of power who learn about it). Its members have combat styles that each vary wildly, often superhuman or technologically-enhanced, but one of the few constants from the UAA’s earliest days is the ubiquitous [url=http://nomoreheroes.wikia.com/wiki/Beam_Katana]beam katana[/url]: a blade of superheated plasma fired from an emitter unit, then contained by either a receiver unit or, more commonly nowadays as the technology has been perfected, a shaped magnetic field, and advances in the field have made them ever more powerful. (No, they aren’t “lightsabers”. They aren’t even made of light. Think for a second next time you want to ask a silly question.) Into the fray step many intrepid assassins - perhaps old hands who never caught their lucky break until now, or perhaps newcomers to the art, but certainly none are new to the basics of how to kill. Formed together under the guiding hand of the agents of the Association, they will climb their way through the ranks of the UAA, their violent rampage an effort to ultimately reach its highest peaks and achieve profit like nothing they’ve ever seen before. [hr] [center][u][b][h3]Basic Rules[/h3][/b][/u][/center] 1. [i]Trust your Force.[/i] There are site rules in place for a reason; please try to follow them. 2. [i]You want to be number 1.[/i] There are going to be a fair number of teams, depending on how many characters exist in each team; whilst assassins in each team will be roughly allied with one another, each team's assassins will be competing against other teams as well as NPC assassins in their efforts to reach the top spots. Thus, PvP fights will occur, perhaps even between teammates who are gunning for higher positions relative to one another; the nature of the UAA is such that the vast majority of ranked matches end in death for the loser (with a reprieve specifically allowed for in-team quarrels), so be aware that your character could die as a result. 3. [i]There is no exit to Paradise.[/i] Players whose characters I accept will be expected to post within a reasonable timeframe. I can make allowances for unexpected life situations, but if you’re consistently a week or two behind every other poster, the assassination gig is likely to catch up with your character sooner rather than later. 4. [i]Head for the Garden of Madness.[/i] Skill and creativity are important here; make sure you write to the Advanced section’s expected standards, get creative with describing your character’s actions and thoughts, and if you have any ideas, hit me up with them. I may be able to use them. 5. [i]You need to wake up.[/i] At the bottom of the character sheet, in the "Other Things" section, tell me the colour of Travis' standard leather jacket. Helpful hint: it's red. [center][u][b][h3]Massed Combat (and other RP scenarios)[/h3][/b][/u][/center] En route to a ranked fight, or within the context of standard assassination missions, battle is quite freeform: the low-rank minions in your path, whilst potentially dangerous, ultimately do not pose a mortal threat to high-end assassins, and you may write relatively freely about what actions your character takes against them within the context of the current fighting stage. This rule also applies to out-of-combat scenarios such as buying new stuff or working labour to raise funds for your missions and equipment, and at risk of sharing the pay, you're allowed to collaborate with other assassins on your team in matters that are not a ranked fight's precursor stage, so have fun with those. Some of these low-ranking assassins use their fists or melee weapons, others use knuckle dusters enhanced with beam technology, others still use guns in some form or another, and a rare few manage to get their hands on beam katanas of their own. You have mostly free reign over which mooks are present and what your characters do to defeat each set of minions, though I’ll inform you if any minion types are explicitly present; put up your character’s actions, collaborate on actions if you like, and beat those mooks to a pulp as you see fit. [center][u][b][h3]Ranked Fights (offense and defense)[/h3][/b][/u][/center] Ranked fights will feature major enemy assassins, both for team members to challenge to hit the next rank (and outside of PvP situations, discussed below, it [i]will[/i] always be "the next rank above yours") and challenging individual members of your team. These foes will be far more dangerous, and will include both characters created by the GMs and characters created specifically for the purpose by regular players. If an assassin was originally created for the purpose of being a boss, their creator will be asked if they’d like to play out the boss fight; if they cannot for some reason, or if the GMs created the assassin, it will be a GM who controls their actions instead. When challenging an assassin for their rank, one team member will go after them, granting the challenger the rank up upon victory, whilst the rest of the team is pulled up with them by consequence of the one who’d otherwise hold their rank being dead. Once the initial chatter is over and done with, the player will post in step with the enemy's controller, reacting to the boss’ actions whilst enacting their own. Good tactics are rewarded with quicker kills; bad tactics may require you to reload until you learn... well, it’ll take you more time to beat them. Unless you REALLY suck. Then, you’re on your own. Speaking of which, an assassin defending their rank must also do so alone. They will be “politely asked” to wait for their opponent in a suitable arena, most likely their own, and will have a short reprieve before their opponent slaughters their minions and reaches them. The same rules apply here as to when the team challenges another assassin; other characters will have their own tasks to perform in the meantime, be it standard assassination jobs, a ranked match against an NPC, or a special mission, or perhaps a rank defense fight of their own. Feel free to ask for something to do if you don’t just want to go out and do regular missions, like a boring old assassin would. [center][u][b][h3]Player Versus Player (a life and death scenario)[/h3][/b][/u][/center] Sometimes, a player character may want to challenge another player character for their rank, though concessions have been made that allow teams to avoid interfering with one another. Eventually, though, if you want your character to hit the topmost ranks- and you do- they will [i]have[/i] to challenge another PC for their rank, if yours is below them in rank, or else wind up challenged for theirs by a PC with a lower rank than them. In this case, a PvP battle will ensue, one player character against another. In most cases, I will trust the two players to reach a reasonable accord in terms of figuring out who wins, but if such a situation is infeasible, [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/160519-the-crucible-winner-take-all/ooc]I'll steal the system from this game:[/url] each round, both players write a length of action starring both characters, and the other players then vote on which of the two versions is better by liking their preferred post. Most votes take the round, first to three rounds wins the fight. The end result of the fight is another matter. In-team PvP ought to be resolved non-lethally in the first place, since killing your teammate is agreed to be a suboptimal idea by both your agent and the CEO of UAA - though you won't technically be penalised for it, if for some reason you feel it appropriate. On the other hand, PvP between teams is the same as a normal ranked match, and by UAA rules, an assassin's loss means their death unless a case can be made for a very large potential improvement in their abilities. If you don't kill the other character, the cleaners who come along will probably do it for you unless you stop them somehow, either via persuasion, or excessive and rapid force, and this latter option is very unlikely to make you many friends in the upper ranks of the Association. [hr] [center][h3][u][b]Character Sheet[/b][/u][/h3][/center] Most players will be signing up as ranked assassins, and the character sheet below reflects this notion. However, if you are granted permission to do so, you are also allowed to sign up as an agent of the United Assassins Association instead, one of the people who organise ranked matches for the assassins in the rankings as either hire-ins or former assassins in their own right. For these characters, the "Your Turf" section is unnecessary, since they will not typically be participating in ranked matches anyway; if they have their own combat capabilities, however, the "Battle Rites" section may be included to describe what they can do, though it is optional, and likewise with the Codename header in the "Basics" section. [hider=Character Sheet] [center][img][/img] Put an image up here if you like. Feel free to move the Name and/or Codename field to below the image too if you want.[/center] [center][h3][u]Basics[/u][/h3][/center] [b]Name[/b]: Self-explanatory. If your character goes by any nicknames, put them here too. [b]Codename[/b]: The name or title your character optionally uses in their work as an assassin. Put “N/A” if this field isn’t applicable. [b]Age[/b]: How long your character has existed for, whether from the date of their natural birth or that of their artificial creation. Be reasonable about this. [b]Appearance[/b]: What your character looks like. An image is all well and good, but you should be able to describe them too. [b]Personality[/b]: Describe how your character acts, how they interact with others, their personality traits and quirks, and of course what fulfilment they find in violently slaughtering sentient beings, if any. If you have anything else to add on to that, please do so. [b]History[/b]: Your character’s past and backstory. What was their childhood like? What drove them into the game of assassination? How long have they been doing assassin work for? Any major friends or foes in their past? And so on. [center][h3][u]Battle Rites[/u][/h3][/center] [b]Combat Style[/b]: The basics of how your character fights. Do they use a beam katana in a particular form of swordplay? Do they shoot at people from a distance whilst standing completely still? Do they have some ridiculous martial arts styles under their black belt? Or do they do something entirely different? [b]Equipment[/b]: The tools and gear your character uses to murder people, if they indeed use anything beyond their own bodies. Technology in the year whatever is pretty advanced, so don’t feel shy about suggesting something; I’ll tell you when you’ve gone too far. [b]Powers[/b]: Your character’s own powers and abilities, either enhanced in some way or developed naturally. Basically anything that isn’t derived from external equipment goes here, including technological modifications to their body if pertinent. [b]Special Techniques[/b]: The equivalent of super moves, such as the Dark Side abilities of a certain legendary assassin, granting anything from a physical ability boost to an AoE attack strong enough to instantly slay weaker foes. They aren’t necessarily restricted by charging of any sort, but can be draining to use more than once without such, so be conservative with their use, and try not to implement more than a few. [center][h3][u]Your Turf[/u][/h3][/center] [b]Arena Description[/b]: Sometimes, assassins have to defend their rank, and their personal arena is most likely where they’ll do it. Describe the stage in which your character will fight any foes who come along to challenge their rank, including the name and aesthetic of the location, and the general layout of the arena where the ranked match itself will occur. [b]Arena Tactics[/b]: It’s your character’s arena, after all. Is there anything fun they can do in it? Describe any special tactics your character can use to enhance their advantage in this arena if applicable, including making use of environmental hazards, deliberate installations, and other tools and equipment that they would not otherwise have access to. [b]Minion Description[/b]: Assassins have an arena, and their arena typically contains mooks. Describe their outfits and gear - their style, their preferred weapons and tactics, and any other notable features about them. To wit, whilst your character’s minions are technically either low-ranking assassins bullied into defending you, or your character’s own standard employees in their downtime, they are nonetheless fodder compared to the foes that will come after your character for their ranked fight. Good thing they’re so cheap to hire! [center][h3][u]Other Things[/u][/h3][/center] So, how’s your family doing? Have you drained the lizard? Got any broken limbs you want to set? French accents aside, this section is for anything else I might not have included up above, such as an appropriate theme song for your character or any aspects of their being that you weren’t able to fit into their personality or history. [/hider] [hider=CS Raw] [code] [center][img][/img] Put an image up here if you like. Feel free to move the Name and/or Codename field to below the image too if you want.[/center] [center][h3][u]Basics[/u][/h3][/center] [b]Name[/b]: Self-explanatory. If your character goes by any nicknames, put them here too. [b]Codename[/b]: The name or title your character optionally uses in their work as an assassin. Put “N/A” if this field isn’t applicable. [b]Age[/b]: How long your character has existed for, whether from the date of their natural birth or that of their artificial creation. Be reasonable about this. [b]Appearance[/b]: What your character looks like. An image is all well and good, but you should be able to describe them too. [b]Personality[/b]: Describe how your character acts, how they interact with others, their personality traits and quirks, and of course what fulfilment they find in violently slaughtering sentient beings, if any. If you have anything else to add on to that, please do so. [b]History[/b]: Your character’s past and backstory. What was their childhood like? What drove them into the game of assassination? How long have they been doing assassin work for? Any major friends or foes in their past? And so on. [center][h3][u]Battle Rites[/u][/h3][/center] [b]Combat Style[/b]: The basics of how your character fights. Do they use a beam katana in a particular form of swordplay? Do they shoot at people from a distance whilst standing completely still? Do they have some ridiculous martial arts styles under their black belt? Or do they do something entirely different? [b]Equipment[/b]: The tools and gear your character uses to murder people, if they indeed use anything beyond their own bodies. Technology in the year whatever is pretty advanced, so don’t feel shy about suggesting something; I’ll tell you when you’ve gone too far. [b]Powers[/b]: Your character’s own powers and abilities, either enhanced in some way or developed naturally. Basically anything that isn’t derived from external equipment goes here, including technological modifications to their body if pertinent. [b]Special Techniques[/b]: The equivalent of super moves, such as the Dark Side abilities of a certain legendary assassin, granting anything from a physical ability boost to an AoE attack strong enough to instantly slay weaker foes. They aren’t necessarily restricted by charging of any sort, but can be draining to use more than once without such, so be conservative with their use, and try not to implement more than a few. [center][h3][u]Your Turf[/u][/h3][/center] [b]Arena Description[/b]: Sometimes, assassins have to defend their rank, and their personal arena is most likely where they’ll do it. Describe the stage in which your character will fight any foes who come along to challenge their rank, including the name and aesthetic of the location, and the general layout of the arena where the ranked match itself will occur. [b]Arena Tactics[/b]: It’s your character’s arena, after all. Is there anything fun they can do in it? Describe any special tactics your character can use to enhance their advantage in this arena if applicable, including making use of environmental hazards, deliberate installations, and other tools and equipment that they would not otherwise have access to. [b]Minion Description[/b]: Assassins have an arena, and their arena typically contains mooks. Describe their outfits and gear - their style, their preferred weapons and tactics, and any other notable features about them. To wit, whilst your character’s minions are technically either low-ranking assassins bullied into defending you, or your character’s own standard employees in their downtime, they are nonetheless fodder compared to the foes that will come after your character for their ranked fight. Good thing they’re so cheap to hire! [center][h3][u]Other Things[/u][/h3][/center] So, how’s your family doing? Have you drained the lizard? Got any broken limbs you want to set? French accents aside, this section is for anything else I might not have included up above, such as an appropriate theme song for your character or any aspects of their being that you weren’t able to fit into their personality or history. [/code] [/hider] NPCs may also be submitted freely, either as boss characters, assassins, or other GM-controlled roles. This has a separate sheet to submit, as seen below. [hider=Non-Player Character Sheet] [center][img][/img]image here [h3][b]name here[/b][/h3][/center] One or two paragraphs describing the NPC go here. For assassins, that can include any relevant backstory and their abilities; for agents, that can include skills and why the UAA accepted them; and for shopkeepers, it can include what they sell and why. [/hider] [hider=NPCS Raw] [code] [center][img][/img]image here [h3][b]name here[/b][/h3][/center] One or two paragraphs describing the NPC concisely go here. For assassins, that can include any relevant backstory and their abilities; for agents, that can include skills and why the UAA accepted them; and for shopkeepers, it can include what they sell and why. [/code] [/hider] And finally, before you begin, just keep in mind this final quote from a special someone: [center][i]“Fighting to be the best is human nature. It’s evolution!”[/i][/center]